1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to online Internet applications. More particularly, the present invention relates to online Internet applications and portable devices.
2. Background Art
Online applications featuring user created personas, continuously refreshed content, and vast social communities are becoming increasingly popular in today's highly networked world. Free from the restraints of the physical world, these online applications enable users to indulge in character role playing that is impossible to experience in their everyday life and provides them with a creative outlet that is unrestrained by the societal norms of mainstream society.
Without physical boundaries, users are able to interact with individuals around the world that they may never have an opportunity to meet in real life. The non-confrontational communications medium of the Internet also enables normally shy and withdrawn individuals to express themselves more confidently online. A user that has difficulty establishing real life personal relationships often discovers that due to the physically removed nature of the Internet, a supportive social group is just a click away.
To relieve stress, have fun, explore alternative identities, and develop social relations, users spend significant amounts of time, money, and effort customizing their online persona, amassing virtual property, advancing their status, and interacting with the online community. Through these extended interactions, users develop strong emotional attachments with the online persona associated with their online user account, desiring ways to maximize quality time with their newly developed identity.
Although these online applications may provide very compelling user experiences, it is nearly impossible to continue these online experiences in a portable context due to the demanding hardware and connectivity requirements of these online applications. Supporting an online application that is compelling enough to attract and retain users requires large, powerful machines that consume substantial amounts of electricity. In addition, these online applications require a constant connection to the Internet, and will disconnect the user when connectivity to the Internet is lost. Thus, the online application experience is typically restricted to a stationary device at home that is plugged into a wall outlet, such as a large desktop computer or a video game console.
These bulky, immobile devices that are tethered to a wall do not satisfy the needs of today's busy and highly mobile user, who demands easily portable products that are pleasurable to use. To solve this problem, various kinds of portable devices have been developed. Mobile phones replace land line telephones; handheld video game systems substitute for large video game consoles; and media players such as mp3 or video players provide the functions the audio/video equipment rack satisfies at home. Small, light, and frugal on their limited power supply, these portable devices offer extended operational time away from a power outlet and can be easily held and carried by a user during travel. Their integration into modern life is often taken for granted, and many individuals carry one or more of them at all times.
However, the advantages offered by these portable devices are tempered by decreased processing power. Sacrifices are often necessary in component selection to balance the cost, size, and power requirements of the portable device, penalizing the device's performance. As a result, these lower performance portable devices are typically unsuitable to run online applications verbatim.
Although these online applications could conceivably be executed on a more powerful notebook computer, the characteristics of a typical modern notebook computer render it unsuitable as a truly portable device. High cost, limited battery life, unwieldy form factor, weight, and difficulties accessing the Internet away from home are some of the fatal disadvantages of using a notebook computer in an attempt to run online applications in a portable context.
Thus, portable devices provide an alternative by which a user can continue to develop his online persona without being tied to a stationary location. Although the portable device is offline from the online network, a user can still use the portable device to interact with a localized version of his online persona, a portable user account. However, the disadvantage is that the time spent and progress earned with the portable device is restricted to the portable device itself.
Accordingly, there is a need to overcome the drawbacks and deficiencies in the art by providing a way for a user of an online application to continue some of the experiences of the online application in the context of a convenient offline portable device while avoiding the loss of time spent and progress earned.